A View from the Press Box

One of my longtime blog readers, who goes by the classic nom de plum “Joe Skeptical” in his frequent responses to my musings, actually posted a poem this week in the comment section of our July 27 article about AIG’s property and casualty insurers rebranding yet again–this time reborn as “Chartis.” I don’t believe I’ve ever seen one of our readers driven to poetry to express his views! I post the poem below for your reading pleasure: (more…)

I was skeptical when my friend Milton insisted that none of the key elements of health care reform legislation would take effect for four years, thus rendering moot the charge by critics that coverage mandates would overburden businesses recovering from the current recession. Turns out Milton was right! That lag time should dramatically change the debate, except no one seems to know about this. (more…)

Watching President Barack Obama’s press conference on health care reform the other night, I was not surprised that little was said about the mandates being proposed in Congress–requiring employers to offer coverage or pay a penalty, and requiring that everyone buy coverage. That was no doubt because the word “mandates” scares many and infuriates some, and could end up sinking the whole initiative–although I don’t understand what everyone is so worked up about. (more…)

NU Associate Editor Mark E. Ruquet had a front-row seat for most of the trial pitting AIG versus its former CEO, Maurice “Hank” Greenberg, in a battle of the titans over a deferred compensation program. The way Mark sees it, the quick jury verdict shows this case came down to a matter of trust–as well as the lack of a “smoking gun” by the plaintiffs. Read on for his inside account and take on the trial. (more…)

It was quite impressive to see over 1,000 agents march on Capitol Hill last week to make sure Congress doesn’t take them for granted in the helter-skelter debate to reshape the health insurance system. But they have a steep climb indeed to head off creation of a proposed public plan that could eventually eliminate their role in this lucrative market. (more…)

What if a current or former CEO is sued by laid-off employees claiming economic harm caused by executive incompetence? Should those in the C-Suite face the same malpractice exposure as other professionals, and if so, how might the directors and officers insurance market respond? Those were some of the questions raised by a recent episode of the ABC legal dramedy, “Eli Stone.” (more…)

One of the first  health care reform initiatives launched by President Barack Obama was a call to set up a nationwide, electronic medical records system. Given the insurance industry’s heavy involvement in claims documentation, and ACORD’s track record in bringing the property and casualty sector up to speed when it comes to standardized forms, wouldn’t it make sense for ACORD to take a leading role here as well? (more…)

I told you no one ever won any money betting against Hank Greenberg. While I was skeptical he would triumph over his old firm, AIG, in a court battle of the titans over funds allegedly set aside for executive compensation, wondering whether this would be his “last stand,” the jury’s verdict in his favor has turned out to be his last laugh. (more…)

The National Weather Service finally got around to naming a storm system after me–Hurricane Sam, which would be the 18th such event of 2009. Let’s hope we don’t get that far down the list this year, because if we do, that means we’re having a terrible catastrophe season, huge insured losses and the end of the soft market–at least for property risks. (more…)